Restart
by A-to-Q
Summary: -continuation from Promise of Reunion- A year has passed since the horrific events at the art gallery, and Ib hopes that this time, they can all be together again... Rated T just in case, summary to change.
1. Chapter 1

_'Next Tuesday marks the first anniversary of the death of the great artist, Guertena Weiss. The town has decided that to commemorate this day, they shall hold another art exhibition for the-'_

_'Taking care of dogs can be simple, so long as you choose a kind that suits you and your living environment.'_

Ib switched the channels the moment she heard the words Guertena, and art exhibition.

Just last year, at the very first art exhibition she went to, she had been through many life-threatening events that she wished had never took place. But...

"...if I didn't go, then I probably would have never met Garry..."

Ib and Garry.

Two entirely different people in two entirely different worlds.

If not for that horrifying art gallery, the two would have probably never met.

And neither would they have met Mary.

"Mary..."

Just recalling the expression on Mary's face when they burnt her made Ib's heart ache.

Ib had treated Mary like a sister, and was reluctant to leave her behind when Garry told her that Mary was a painting. Now that Ib thought about it, maybe Mary didn't die, and had sent the 'Other Mother' after Ib so that she would stay with her.

Ib started wondering if Mary's portrait might be there, even though Garry had burnt it the other time.

"Ib, do you want to go to the art exhibition? You were really excited the other time around. I heard that they'll be putting up some more artworks this time around."

Ib looked at her mother, who had come into the living room a few minutes ago. The more she looked, the more she couldn't tell the difference between her real mother and the fake one.

"What's wrong, Ib?"

"It's nothing..."

"I see... Well, do you want to go? Father has to take leave off from work early if you want to go. Or it can just be the two of us~"'

"That's just mean, mother."

"I suppose you're right~ I'll ask him about it when he gets home later. If he agrees, we can all go together, just like last time~"

"Last time, huh..."

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**Sorry for the rushed ending, I became brain-dead before I could finish the chapter Q-Q  
And yeah, Guertena's full name is Guertena Weiss. I forgot where I found that information from though...**


	2. Chapter 2

Garry was walking along the streets when he saw some people giving out fliers to passer-bys. He went over, took one of the fliers and looked at it. Almost immediately, all the bad memories of his visit to Guertena's art gallery came back to him.

As the person talked to Garry, who wasn't paying attention, about some of the new features in the gallery this time around, he recalled the memories of the mannequins and Lady in Red, Blue, or Green paintings chasing after him.

"But those dolls have to be the worst..."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Ah, no... It's nothing. Thank you."

Garry walked away and stuffed the flier into his pocket.

"Sigh... Another Guertena exhibition..."

Garry wasn't sure if having more of Guertena's paintings was a good, or a bad thing.

Good, in the sense that there would be more nice drawings for the public to look at.

Bad, in the sense that there might be more things chasing after people this time if anyone got trapped in that 'other museum'.

Just as he was thinking about all the bad things that occurred the last time he attended something related to Guertena, he remembered Ib, who had accompanied him throught the whole ordeal.

_'I wonder if Ib's going... If she does, I hope nothing bad happens again...'_

Then, he remembered about Mary.

He vividly remembered the look on Mary's face when he and Ib had burnt Mary's portrait, and how she had turned into nothing but ashes. When that was over, the two look around Mary's room, which was full of typical items a child would have. There were storybooks, crayons, dolls, a sketchbook filled with crayon drawings, and there was even a mannequin head with a funny wig and mouth that Mary was trying to draw.

What made Garry guilty, was what they found when they were going through Mary's belongings.

'How to Make Friends', as well as Mary's crayon book.

Looking at those two things made Garry feel guilty about assuming that Mary was out to kill them. But then, what had already been done couldn't be changed now could it?

* * *

**And yet another short chapter.**  
**For those wondering when my KHR ff would be updated, I can't say for certain right now, as my schedule is more hectic than ever. However, I'll try to get a chapter up by Sunday. As for this ff, I'll try to update it on a weekly basis until it reaches five chapters. From then on, it'll depend on my workload.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Personally... I feel that I should postpone my ff writing until after this whole darn school performance is over with...sigh... I can't write properly with all the instructors yelling at us. It's like they expect a bomb to go off just because we sit 1cm off from the line. But then, I'm just complaining. Now for some review replies :D**

** Truefortune: Firstly, thanks for reviewing~ I love reviews so yeah. Orz And true, both chapters are short and not up to standard at all o_o One of the main problems is what I've said above, which is making me not in the correct mood for Restart. Another problem is that I can fit into the character more if I can relate to the character, or know someone who's similar to the character so that I can feel the character for myself. And my friend messing around with me in her Garry cosplay on Cosfest didn't really help Orz And since you sympathize with Mary, I suppose that you might like this chapter.**

**This chapter is in first-person view. Enjoy~**

* * *

"Where am I...?"

Looking around the place, I realised that it looked nothing like the museum I was used to, and neither was it the sketchbook.

There were paintings I've never seen before, which was impossible because I was the last painting Guertena made, which meant that there shouldn't be any more paintings or statues or etcetera after me.

If this place was a museum, it looked weird. There were many other smaller museums inside it, there was this black stuff in the middle of this huge open-air corridor, and the paintings were just walking around like normal people.

_People...?_

I then thought, 'Could this probably be 'The Fabricated World'...?'

People were walking around, talking, laughing, doing things I've read about in some of the books in the museum. However, the place I was currently at seemed kind of different from the way the books described the Fabricated World.

Because currently, in front of me, there were weird, bulky guys with weird shapes on their bodies and wearing hideous black clothes with awful hairstyles. They were definitely not something from the museum, which kind of told me that this wasn't the cold, sort of comfy art gallery I knew. And those guys didn't look too friendly.

"Hey, little missy, you're quite cute aren't you?"

And at least one of them had bad breath.

Although being with technically non-human looking entities is part of a daily life for me, this current experience was terrifying.

And annoying.

However, I doubt a few swipes of a palette knife can bring down anyone in the Fabricated World. Especially people who are even huger than Garry. And there I thought Garry was large enough for a human.

I tried to sneak away slowly, but it didn't work very well. I was surrounded, and there wasn't much of a gap anywhere for me to escape. In the museum, everyone was nice and helped each other out whenever we could. They also tried to help me get to this world, as they saw how much I wanted to live here. But now, I feel as though that chilly museum might be a better place to live in than here.

No one helped me now that I'm in trouble, and just walked past or gave a short glance and walked away quickly, minding their own business.

As those apes continued prattling on, trying to get my attention, I started to feel sick. I was starting to hate this world. No wonder Guertena immersed himself in our world so much. This world wasn't as beautiful as I had thought.

"Shut up..."

"Hmm? Did you say something, missy?"

"Get away from me...!"

"And who are you to order us around?"

One of them reached his hand towards me and I somehow managed to push him aside.

"I said..."

Before I realised it, red cracks had appeared on the floor around me.

"...GET AWAY FROM ME!"

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**So now people might be thinking 'OMG. IS THIS MARY?'. Yes, it is Mary. As to questions on why she's not burnt or dead, your questions will be answered in future chapters. Thanks for reading~**


	4. Chapter 4

**So sorry for the extremely late update! I had extreme writer's block for this ff, and I was too high on passing my Mathematics for once that I entirely devoted myself to studying Maths for one whole week.**

**So now, here's chapter 4! Enjoy, people!**

* * *

"Did you forget anything, Ib?"

"Now that I think about it, I haven't seen your handkerchief in a while... You know, the one you got for your birthday."

_'This is bad... What do I say...?'_

Ib didn't want to lie to her parents, but she didn't want to tell them that she lent her brand new handkerchief to someone she just met. They would scream at her for lending such an expensive, and laced handkerchief to a complete stranger. Although, Garry wasn't exactly a stranger. As her parents looked at her with curious eyes, the little brunette tried to think of something to say.

"Um... I-I lent it to a friend at school...b-because he accidentally cut himself..."

Well, that was a half truth and a half lie I suppose.

"I see. How did he cut himself?"

"Eh? Um... there was a broken window... and some glass cut his hand..."

"A broken window?! Is it fixed now?"

"Yes... It's fixed now."

"Must be those unruly boys playing soccer in the corridors again. How awful! It's fine if it doesn't injure anyone, but it did! Sigh... Well then, shall we go now, Ib?"

"Yes, mother."

Ib's family was headed to the Guertena Art Exhibition in town that week. The venue was the same place as the last time, but they had renovated recently and was now larger, and was able to put more art pieces on show.

_More art pieces..._

_Would Mary be there...?_

"'The Geometric Fish', 'Marvelous Night, 'Clown'... They all seem rather interesting, don't you think Ib? Ib? Are you listening, Ib?"

"Y-Yes, mother..."

"Are you alright, Ib? You seem to be spacing out a lot today."

"No, I'm fine."

Garry was headed to the exact same Guertena art exhibition Ib and her family was, but of course, didn't know that.

In his way there, he passed by a flower shop and noticed a new rose colour on sale.

"A yellow rose..."

"Yes! Our shop managed to acquire a batch recently! They're really popular among..."

Garry didn't really pay attention to the florist, and continued to stare at the yellow rose.

Its yellow petals, its green stalk and the blue ribbon tying the bunch together vividly reminded him of Mary.

"...sir? Sir?"

"Eh?"

"Are you listening, sir?"

"Oh...um...I'm sorry..."

Garry gave an apologetic look and continued heading to the gallery.

Though it was Garry knew that he had to burn Mary in that situation, he still felt guilty about it. After all, she was just a lonely girl stuck in that cold art gallery...

Suddenly, he saw a familiar green dress pass on the opposite road.

And without thinking, Garry was about to dash across the road when a car zoomed right past in front of him. And almost immediately, she was gone.

"...I must be going crazy...maybe I shouldn't go to this art exhibition after all...But then... Ib might be there...~"

And with that, a slight smile appeared on Garry's face as he headed towards the art exhibition that he probably was not so wholeheartedly looking forward to.


	5. Chapter 5

**So Ib is gonna get an update, and it seems that it's going to give Mary more dialogue. And possibly more paintings (if there's space to fit them).**

Once they were at the gallery, Ib's father checked in as usual. But this time, Ib decided to stick with her parents.

"What's wrong, Ib? You were really eager to see the exhibits last time."

"Um... There were some exhibits I didn't understand the other time, and since we didn't have time to go round the place again, I ended up not understanding many of the works there... So this time, I want to wait with mummy and daddy so you can explain to me...!~"

"I see~ That's nice of you, Ib~ Trying to understand the concept of Guertena's artworks at such a young age~"

"Thank you, mama~"

On Garry's side, he walked past the Hanged Man painting, and looked around at the other paintings. He kept his left hand in his pocket, clutching his lighter which he had refilled a few days prior.

"I hope I don't have to use it for anything cruel anymore..."

As he walked past the door of the Staff Room, he heard voices inside.

"That's odd... Are you sure this is the right painting?"

"I'm certain! I opened the package when it was being delivered, and the girl was still there!"

"Then do you think someone might have sabotaged it? I mean, it looks kind of burnt..."

When Garry heard the word 'burnt', he stopped and peeked in.

One of the staff members was holding a slightly charred painting frame, with cracked glass and a nearly blank canvas, save for some yellow roses at the bottom. Immediately, Garry recognised the painting.

It was Mary's.

It looked just like Mary's painting when Ib and he were running away from Mary in that black and pink crayon room filled with Mary's stuff. But like the guy had said, it looked sort of burnt.

"No way... How..."

"Did you guys hear something?"

Garry quickly walked away, just in case the museum staff members thought that it was Garry who had destroyed the painting, which was true, and make him pay for it.

Just as he took another step, he thought he saw familiar golden hair and a familiar green dress run past him in the corner of his eye.

"Mary...!?"

He turned around to look, but no one was there.

"I... I was protecting Ib. There's no reason at all, to be guilty. Yeah... No reason to be guilty..."

Garry slowly calmed down, turned back in the direction he was initially facing and continued walking.

Meanwhile, Ib was walking around the gallery with her parents this time, and she didn't notice Garry, nor did he notice her because her parents were blocking their line of sight.

"This painting is quite impressive, don't you think?"

"Yes, as expected of the great Guertena."

Garry heard the remarks of some visitors to the gallery as he walked past.

"'The great Guertena', huh... What's so great about that old man anyway?"


	6. Chapter 6: Such beautiful eyes you have

"What are you looking at, Ib? There's nothing there but the window."

"Eh? But..."

Right in front of Ib, was a painting.

A burnt painting.

The scent of the charred canvas, the vibrant yellow roses that turned into ashes.

It was Mary's painting, no doubt.

"Come on, Ib. If you stand there looking at the sky all day, nothing's going to happen."

"Y-Yes...!"

Ib ran back to her parent's side and continued walking with them.

"I wasn't expecting much though. And it seems I was right. Most of the paintings here and what we saw last time."

"But there's also the Geometrical Fish, Peacock Pattern and others..."

"Are you alright, Ib? There aren't any such paintings here. Well, not that I've noticed at least."

"But... They're all right there..."

Ib pointed to a painting on the wall.

"See? That one there is-...?"

The lights flickered.

"No... Not again...! Mary, no... Please...!"

"You deserve this, Ib. You killed me."

"Mary...!?"

Ib spun around, and faced the burnt Mary painting again.

This time, Mary was standing in front of the portrait. Her hair, clothes, and body was badly burnt, and you could see rank masses of exposed burnt flesh.

"No... Stay away... Please, stay away...!"

Mary inched closer.

"What's wrong, Ib? Didn't we promise each other before? That we would be _**together, forever**_?"

Mary broke into a maniacal laugh and a twisted smile formed on her face.

Faced with such a sight, Ib did the only thing she could do.

Run.

She kept running, and even though Mary was simply walking towards her ever so slowly, the distance between them seemed to be getting shorter, as if Mary was sucking Ib towards her.

"There's no need to run, Ib! This time, Garry isn't around to take you away from me anymore!"

"No! Stay away!"

Ib suddenly hit a wall and tumbled onto the floor backwards.

"Ouch..."

She tried to stand up, but her hair was grabbed by something.

"...!"

She was made to turn around and face Mary, who had pulled her up to eye level. In her other hand was her palette knife, which was poised right above Ib.

"Now, I can finally keep you by my side and we can finally be together... **FOREVER**!"

The palette knife swung down and Ib felt a sharp pain slice through her left eye, and go past it.

"Such beautiful eyes you have, Ib...~"

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**I'll leave you guys in suspense as to what happens to Ib.**


End file.
